Unbreakable by Kami Garcia

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Author's 

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Book summary:

"I never believed in ghosts. Until one tried to kill me."
When Kennedy Waters finds her mother dead, her world begins to unravel. She doesn’t know that paranormal forces in a much darker world are the ones pulling the strings. Not until identical twins Jared and Lukas Lockhart break into Kennedy’s room and destroy a dangerous spirit sent to kill her. The brothers reveal that her mother was part of an ancient secret society responsible for protecting the world from a vengeful demon — a society whose five members were all murdered on the same night.
Now Kennedy has to take her mother’s place in the Legion if she wants to uncover the truth and stay alive. Along with new Legion members Priest and Alara, the teens race to find the only weapon that might be able to destroy the demon — battling the deadly spirits he controls every step of the way.

        Another big name in our little bookish world is for sure Kami Garcia. Even though her Beautiful Creatures series wasn't something I enjoyed, still I wanted to give her books another chance especially after hearing some interesting things about this series. So when it appeared as read-now on NetGalley I said why not!

        I wish I didn't, though. I'm not sure should I pull out I'm too old for this or this is not for me card or it's not only that. There is mix of that and mix of some issues I had with this book. But while this story promises you a really thrilling and dark story with some interesting background story, it gives you bits of that but not fully to be crazy about the story. It offers a really nice background story and interesting idea with that, but sadly it wasn't developed enough so I could understand it better. It will probably be in the sequel, but I'm not sure that I'll be reading it.

       Now we come to the part which I had issues with - meaning the characters. Now I'm pulling my "I'm too old for this" card and I'll say that while Kennedy was your typical seventeen year old girl it's where it stops. She is not remarkable and unforgettable. Rather she is now after few weeks of reading this story just another character I will forget in few months. It's not only her but the problem here is that despite the love-triangle we had here, I believe that when you have twins as characters you need to make them unique and different enough for us to be able to distinguish between them. In theory that was done here because in descriptions boys were just that, but as soon as they started doing something they became the same. Both were bad boys but doing bad things just because they survived some traumas, which is as we all know always a good reason. Did I say typical already?

    So, bottom line is that I believe that people who enjoyed Beautiful Creatures and some other similar books and younger readers who are discovering YA will enjoy this one, but we who had a decent share of typical stories not so much.

Rating: 2 stars.

Until the next time,

*Note copy of this book was kindly provided by the publisher via NetGalley. Thank you!

(ARC Review) Eight Days a Week by Amber L. Johnson

Author's:

Website / Twitter / Facebook / Goodreads 

Expected publication date: October 6th 2014

My rating: 3 stars

Book summary:

"Gwen Stone has secrets she’s not ready to reveal. After a recent promotion at work, she needs a caretaker for her children. She’s frenzied and in a lurch and pretty much ready to hire the first person who comes along. So she does.

Andrew Lyons needs to get out of his sister’s apartment, and a Craigslist posting may be the answer to his prayers. But what he thought was an ad for a room rental turns into a job offer he can’t refuse. Accepting the nanny position could change his life, if only he had a clue how to be a grownup.

A working mother, a shirtless manny who looks good in a towel, two children who need more than than a babysitter, and hours of kids’ TV can only spell disaster for everyone involved.

Because a manny should always mind his own business.

And he definitely shouldn’t fall in love with his boss."

The Nanny Diaries meets Uptown Girls meets Raising Helen. But instead of a girl as a nanny, you have 26 years old guy who still acts like a kid. Eight Days a Week is second novel written by Amber L. Johnson that I've read so far. Just like Puddle Jumping|, this book is more on the fluff side regardless of how serious topic is. That is no issue at all because this is one of those stories that should make you feel good after you finish reading them. Unfortunately, it has few things that could have been better.

Positive:

• Male POV. It was so fun reading Andrew's point of view. I laughed and got mad, but admired how he changed in the end. 
•  Interaction with kids. That was the best part of the story, both because of the way it was told and all of the emotions that hit you with every page you read. Yes, it was a bit cliche and yes, quite predictable and again - yes, it is all one big looking life trough pink glasses fluff, but it did not stop me to enjoy reading it, feel and laugh.
• Steamy scenes. Oh boy... my knees go all weak when I remember those. Andrew may act like a child sometimes, but in the bedroom... Let's just say that he has few useful tricks.
• Quick read. Eight Days a Week is a book that you will finish in one sitting. I opened it just to read first few lines before deciding what to read next. Few hours later I finished the last page with a huge grin on my face and butterflies in stomach.

Negative:

• What happened before. This is something that bothered me the most - author focuses only on what happens in present. That part of the storyline is perfect, but everything that lead to that moment is kind of blur. Everyone's past is explained in one sentence. One sentence. That is not enough because I did not understand Andrew's and Gwen's issues with their families, everything about accident is too melodramatic and rushed, I have no idea why Gwen is so insecure about herself or why Andrew went away from home.
• Other characters. Some of them had more space than the others, but still I believe that this would be so much better story if there was more interaction with secondary characters and if their actions were explained better. 
• Timeline. I am still confused about when things happened, or long did it last. Few weeks? Months? A year?

Final judgement?

Eight Days a Week is a fun book that will capture your hart with its sweetness and positivity. There are few issues, but still - if you want to read something in short time that will make you feel good, this is a book for you.  

Happy reading,

 

*Copy of the book was provided by publisher, The Writer's Coffee Shop, via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.*

The Sunday Post (#26)

Hello all. Well, as some of you know Sundays are always reserved for Sunday Post which is a meme created by lovely Kim @Caffeinated Book Reviews!

Hiya people. It seems like it was yesterday that we did our last week's Sunday post and we're already doing this week's. Time is a strange thing. But yes another week where both of us were busy with different things and sadly not enough time for blogging. That's hopefully about to change. Also we owe you an apology for the lack of post yesterday, but Glass had some things she had to deal with so she didn't have time for it. Expect that review next week. 

Also Tanja took part in another challenge (she is getting better at them) and this one is about writing reviews. She was so behind on that and now she is catching up. Half of reviews are done and she hopes to do the other half by the end of the day. Maybe you can even expect wrap-up post by the end of the day. 

Here is what else you can expect on our blog. 

• Crushed by Eliza Crewe (Blog Tour) 
• Red Rising by Pierce Brown (review)
• Waiting on Wednesday (#114)
• The Diamond Thief by Sharon Gosling (ARC review)
• Write On Review-a-Thon 

• Eight Days a Week by Amber L. Johnson (ARC review)
• Unbreakable by Kami Garcia
• Waiting on Wednesday (#115)
• Sweet Unrest by Lisa Maxwell (ARC review) 
• Burying Water by K.A. Tucker (ARC review)
• Of Scars and Stardust by Andrea Hannah (ARC Review)

Tanja's haul 

Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake (Croatian edition)

Until the next time, 

Write On Review-a-Thon Sing Up Post/Wrap-Up Post

Write On review-a-thon is a monthly event created and hosted by Brianna at The Book Vixen. It’s 2 days dedicated to getting reviews done, whether you have one review to write or 30+. This edition of the review-a-thon takes place all day Saturday, September 27th and Sunday, September 28th . Let’s get those reviews done!

Hello darlings. Well this is another a-thon I'm taking part in. It's not about reading this time as I do plenty of that lately but actually writing reviews. I'm so behind writing them that this is a great idea and hopefully I'll make myself review some books I've been putting aside. Also if you want to take part in this go to the link above and join the fun! Today is the last day to sign up.

Now I shall list all reviews I hope to write this weekend:

1. The Outside by Laura Bickle - done!
2. Unbreakable by Kami Garcia - done and scheduled! 
3. Get Happy by Mary Amato - done and scheduled!
4. Love and other Unknown Variables by Shannon Lee Alexander - done and scheduled!
5. Ugly Love by Colleen Hoover - done!
6. Stray by Elissa Sussman - done and scheduled!
7. The Unhappening of Genesis Lee by Shallee McArthur - done and scheduled!
8. Induction Day by P.K. Hrezo - done!
9. Landline by Rainbow Rowell - done!
10. Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins * - not done..Emma went MIA :)

*if girls (Glass and Emma) find some time to do joint review

That's my list and hopefully I'll manage to tackle all that so I'll be up to date with my reviews. Wish me luck!

UPDATE: At the end I'm finally up to date with my reviews and now I'm such a happy camper! :)

Until the next time, 

ARC Review: The Diamond Thief by Sharon Gosling

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Author's 

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Publication date: 1st October, 2014

Book summary:

By day Rémy Brunel is a daring circus acrobat, by night she is an equally talented jewel thief currently assigned to steal a famous diamond in Victorian London--but when the theft goes wrong she finds herself allied with a young policeman as they try to find the elusive gem.

           How can someone include so much awesomeness in one book really goes beyond my imagination. But not having read steam-punk stories in a while I was hoping to be thrown in Victorian era again, but the problem is that I am still captured there and I don't want to get out.

          Circus has always been a fascinating thing to me. Ever since I was a child and seeing the glimpse of magic I believed in left strong impression on me. Not surprisingly, Little Bird's acrobatic abilities returned those feelings to me. She is a girl with though past which thought her to take care of herself, same as Thaddeus Rec, a boy who despite everything has all the manners and qualities of a perfect man and who easily captured my attention.

          What I especially loved about this book was that the author gave different voice to the different characters which made them more realistic. With Remy's French words, to the J's street language and Professor's academic speech which defined characters better. Then the magical elements which I didn't expect to find in book as this one.

         One thing that I though would bother me was the age of the characters, but then again seeing that the book was set in Victorian era where child labor was a very common thing and when children grew up faster than we could imagine. I liked that both Remy and Rec give adult vibe which fits the seriousness of their actions better.

         You can only imagine my joy when I saw that the sequel to this novel, The Ruby Airship is out, as I'm going to jump into this world again.

Rating: 5 stars.

Until the next time,

***Note: Copy of this book was kindly provided by the publisher, Switch Press, via NetGalley. Thank you!

Waiting on Wednesday (#114)

You know the story. This is a meme created by Breaking the Spine and every week we pick books we're waiting for. Here are our picks for this week.

Glass' pick

Once upon a time there was a girl named Avery Hensley who thought she’d found the guy—the one that she thought she was going to spend the rest of her life with. They got married young and had the most beautiful son in the world.

Life seemed perfect.

But not everything is what it seems.

Turned out the guy had another side to him, one Avery didn’t see coming. He wrecked her and broke her into a thousand pieces that she had to put back together again. She swore off guys from then on, vowing never to let anyone hurt her or her son again. She built a wall around herself and planned on never letting anyone through it again.

But then she meets Tristan Morganson. He wrecks Avery in a different way, the kind of way that makes her feel free again, the kind of way that makes her think not all guys are bad. But can Avery trust him enough to let her wall come crumbling down?

Expected publication: October 22nd, 2014

Tanja's pick

Marguerite Caine’s physicist parents are known for their radical scientific achievements. Their most astonishing invention: the Firebird, which allows users to jump into parallel universes, some vastly altered from our own. But when Marguerite’s father is murdered, the killer—her parent’s handsome and enigmatic assistant Paul—escapes into another dimension before the law can touch him.

Marguerite can’t let the man who destroyed her family go free, and she races after Paul through different universes, where their lives entangle in increasingly familiar ways. With each encounter she begins to question Paul’s guilt—and her own heart. Soon she discovers the truth behind her father’s death is more sinister than she ever could have imagined.

A Thousand Pieces of You explores a reality where we witness the countless other lives we might lead in an amazingly intricate multiverse, and ask whether, amid infinite possibilities, one love can endure.

Expected publication: November 4th, 2014

We'd love to see your picks so feel free to link them up.

Until the next time,

Red Rising by Pierce Brown

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Author's 

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Book summary:

The Earth is dying. Darrow is a Red, a miner in the interior of Mars. His mission is to extract enough precious elements to one day tame the surface of the planet and allow humans to live on it. The Reds are humanity's last hope.
Or so it appears, until the day Darrow discovers it's all a lie. That Mars has been habitable - and inhabited - for generations, by a class of people calling themselves the Golds. A class of people who look down on Darrow and his fellows as slave labour, to be exploited and worked to death without a second thought.
Until the day that Darrow, with the help of a mysterious group of rebels, disguises himself as a Gold and infiltrates their command school, intent on taking down his oppressors from the inside. But the command school is a battlefield - and Darrow isn't the only student with an agenda.

        There are some things that will make me read a certain books, like recommends from my girls or some really amazing review, but one thing that makes me go and add book on my wishlist is when Keertana puts that book on her "books that linger" shelf. It makes my heart go wild. Red Rising made its way to that shelf and it also made it to my favorite shelf.

         But Red Rising wasn't like that when I started reading. First thing I noticed that this book has a bit different writing. It was a lot of slang in it, and that slang was unknown to me so it took me some time to get used to it and to understand it fully. Once I did I couldn't but turn pages. Another thing is while we cannot place this book in epic fantasy, as it's actually partly dystopia the writing had that note. It was really nicely detailed and while this is not a book that you read in one sitting it for sure is one that lingers.

        That dystopian part of this book would be that we're in the future. People have found the way to inhabit other planets of Solar system and we're placed in Mars. There people are color-divided. Darrow, our main character here, is a teen boy from our point of view but there he is already a slave and married. His family, Reds, are slavers in the society, while Golds rule everything. The catch is that Reds don't know what's happening on surface and once Darrow survives some hard times he finds himself on the surface, where world is much different.

         Red Rising is also mix of lots of things, mythology, battlefields, politics and it was all nicely crafted that even though you per say don't like politics you are eager to understand it. Also all elements fit together and really made sense. But it's not only men's world here, you also get nice female kick ass girls and with all that a really nice and slow-building romance. My favorite thing is that you also get twist and turns that you didn't see coming.

        All in all, this book was like written for my desires, and even though I struggled at the start still this book has got another fan.

Rating: 4.5 stars.

Until the next time,

**Copy of this book was provided by the publisher, Hodder & Stoughton, via NetGalley. Thank you!

The Sunday Post (#25)

Hello all. Well, as some of you know Sundays are always reserved for Sunday Post which is a meme created by lovely Kim @Caffeinated Book Reviews!

Morning. Another quiet week for both of us. We've been reading and relaxing and enjoying probably the last sunny days we've got. In the meantime Tanja's entered 21st centry and is now on instagram! YES, believe it or not ;) You can follow her HERE. 
Also this is the last day of #TackleTBR challenge which Tanja was part of. Below you'll see her wrap up post, but all in all things went better than expected. 

• Bookish Problems #9 - Reading and music 
• Waiting on Wednesday (#113)
• ReBorn by Ada Adams (Cover Reveal)
• I Heart Robot by Suzanne van Rooyen (Cover Reveal) 
• Crown of Ice by Vicki L. Weavil (review)

• Crushed by Eliza Crewe (Blog Tour) 
• Red Rising by Pierce Brown (review)
• Waiting on Wednesday (#114)
• The Diamond Thief by Sharon Gosling (ARC review)
• Burying Water by K.A. Tucker (ARC Review)

Glass' haul

Thank you: Herlequin MIRA and The Writer's Coffee Shop

  

Tanja's haul

Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver (Croatian edition)

Fade Into Red by Reshma K. Barshikar (won @The Readdicts - thank you!)

Thank you: CBB Book Promotions and Leakan Zea Kemp

Tackle TBR - Wrap Up Post 

So the #TackleTBR challenge ended last night. I was really glad to be part of it and I enjoyed chatting with others on twitter and also different giveaways and challenges. Thank you Teressa @Wishful Endings for organizing this and I hope to be part of it another time! 

My primary goal was 6 books and I'm happy to say that I managed to do that and I've actually read 7.5 books at the end, which is amazing. 

Here they are:

1. Crushed by Eliza Crewe 
2. Ghost Heart by Ripley Patton 
3. Stitching Snow by R.C. Lewis - last 50% of it. 
4. Love and Other Unknown Variables by Shannon Lee Alexander 
5. Stray by Elissa Sussman 
6. Ugly Love by Colleen Hoover 
7. The Unhappening of Genesis Lee by Shallee McArthur
8. Induction Day by P.K. Hrezo 

All in all it was a great event and I hope that all of you managed to read as much as you wanted! 

Until the next time, 

Crown of Ice by Vicki L. Weavil

Buy the book at 

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Author's 

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Book summary:

Thyra Winther's seventeen, the Snow Queen, and immortal, but if she can't reassemble a shattered enchanted mirror by her eighteenth birthday she's doomed to spend eternity as a wraith. Armed with magic granted by a ruthless wizard, Thyra schemes to survive with her mind and body intact. Unencumbered by kindness, she kidnaps local boy Kai Thorsen, whose mathematical skills rival her own. Two logical minds, Thyra calculates, are better than one. With time rapidly melting away she needs all the help she can steal. A cruel lie ensnares Kai in her plan, but three missing mirror shards and Kai's childhood friend, Gerda, present more formidable obstacles. Thyra's willing to do anything – venture into uncharted lands, outwit sorcerers, or battle enchanted beasts -- to reconstruct the mirror, yet her most dangerous adversary lies within her breast. Touched by the warmth of a wolf pup's devotion and the fire of a young man's desire, the thawing of Thyra's frozen heart could be her ultimate undoing. 

        As a kid I really was fortunate enough to get and read many of H. C. Anderson's fairy tales. I loved them and had a nice collection of them. But somehow "The Snow Queen" was never among them and it wasn't before Frozen exploded worldwide that I have heard of this tale. Now with Crown of Ice I think I've got to understand it better.

      The first thing I noticed while reading Crown of Ice was how much it stick to the real story. There were a lot of new elements, which I'll mention later on, but basic is there. We've got a boy and a girl, Gerda and Kai, who are a bit older than in fairy tale. But they've been friends forever and during that time Gerda saw Kai as her future and her safe harbor, something that was written in start. At the same time Kai even though incredibly smart still aware that it's likely that he will stay in village despite his desires to go to University. It was all as planed until our Thyra returns to their lives, but now as the Snow Queen and lures Kai into her castle where he is bound to help her. They have little time and lots of things to figure out.

      Despite the base that was somewhat similar to the original this story presents some fresh elements as well. Even though the cover will tell you different story, Crown of Ice was dark and at moments really cruel. The line between good and evil was always present and while I could understand Thyra and her behavior I couldn't connect with her at the same time. That's actually the main reason why I couldn't enjoy this one fully, but everything except that was nicely done. I loved how the story was even unpredictable even though the background was familiar to me.

      All in all, even though story was a bit low at moments, it still was nicely organized and well written.

Rating: 3.5 stars.

Until the next time,

*Note: Copy of this book was kindly provided by the publisher, Month9Books. Thank you!

Cover Reveal: I Heart Robot by Suzanne van Rooyen

Welcome to the Cover Reveal for

I Heart Robot by Suzanne van Rooyen

presented by Month9Books!

Be sure to enter the giveaway found at the end of the post!

I HEART ROBOT Cover Art from Suzanne van Rooyen

I'm not the most artistically inclined. While I do love art and have been known to bust out the pencils and paints myself, it's not an area where I'd consider myself particularly talented. In short, I knew that cover design was something best left to the professional and I had every confidence in Month9Books.

I am so grateful to Georgia McBride for allowing me to have the amount of input I did when it came to cover creation for I Heart Robot. This is a novel that is as much about a civil rights struggle in a futuristic, post-war city as it is about romance, and we wanted a cover that reflected both elements. Finding the right balance between romance and science fiction was a tall order, but Month9Books delivered in spades by presenting me with two stylistically different covers. I loved elements of both, and by working closely with the cover artist and with Georgia we managed to combine all the best parts of both original covers into what we have today: a cover that reflects the gritty world my characters live in while emphasizing the fact that this is above all, a love story.

Sixteen-year-old Tyri wants to be a musician and wants to be with someone who won't belittle her musical aspirations.

Q-I-99 aka 'Quinn' lives in a scrap metal sanctuary with other rogue droids. While some use violence to make their voices heard, demanding equal rights for AI enhanced robots, Quinn just wants a moment on stage with his violin to show the humans that androids like him have more to offer than their processing power.

Tyri and Quinn's worlds collide when they're accepted by the Baldur Junior Philharmonic Orchestra. As the rift between robots and humans deepens, Tyri and Quinn's love of music brings them closer together, making Tyri question where her loyalties lie and Quinn question his place in the world. With the city on the brink of civil war, Tyri and Quinn make a shocking discovery that turns their world inside out. Will their passion for music be enough to hold them together while everything else crumbles down around them, or will the truth of who they are tear them apart?

Title: I Heart Robot
Publication date: March 31, 2015
Publisher: Month9Books, LLC.
Author: Suzanne van Rooyen

Suzanne is a tattooed storyteller from South Africa. She currently lives in Finland and finds the cold, dark forests nothing if not inspiring. Although she has a Master’s degree in music, Suzanne prefers conjuring strange worlds and creating quirky characters. When not writing, she teaches dance and music to middle schoolers and entertains her shiba inu, Lego. Suzanne is represented by Jordy Albert of the Booker Albert Agency.

Connect with the Author: Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

Complete the Rafflecopter below for a chance to win!

(Winners will receive their book on release day)

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Cover Reveal: ReBorn by Ada Adams

Hello all. Today I've got a cover reveal for you. It's for the last book of Angel Creek series and you might have heard of ReVamped and ReAwakened.

So without further ado here is the cover and all the info.

Get ReVamped (Angel Creek #1) at Amazon

Get ReAwekened (Angel Creek #2) at Amazon

About the author

"Many people sing in the shower. I write scenes in my head and act them out."

A self-proclaimed book and TV junkie, Ada Adams spends most of her days immersed in imaginary worlds. Much like the kick-butt female characters she enjoys writing about, she is a martial artist with a Black Belt in Shotokan Karate. She is also a big proponent of lifelong learning and has attained a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology as well as a Masters of Science in Education.

Ada began her writing career at the age of three (with a string of short stories that only a mother could love) and has been inventing quirky characters and imaginary worlds ever since. She is the editor-in-chief of VEUX Magazine (www.veuxmag.com) and a passionate advocate for the arts.

Ada lives in Toronto, Canada. When she is not writing, you can find her on an adventurous nature hike with her puppies, Caramilk and Oreo. Or, more likely, deep in a jar of Nutella.

Author's 

Amazon / Twitter 

Giveaway

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Until the next time,

Waiting on Wednesday (#113)

You know the story. This is a meme created by Breaking the Spine and every week we pick books we're waiting for. Here are our picks for this week.

Glass' pick

From the USA TODAY bestselling author of Sweet Thing and Nowhere But Here comes a deeply emotional contemporary romance about the second chances waiting beyond the shattered dreams of youth.

Under the bright arena lights of a rodeo show, young Avelina Belo falls for a handsome cowboy with a larger-than-life personality. After a whirlwind courtship, she happily moves away from her family in northern California and settles into married life with her cowboy on a seven-thousand-acre cattle ranch in Montana. One freak accident later, Avelina’s hopes for the future come to an end.

Nate Myers graduated from UCLA medical school at the top of his class, ready to follow in the footsteps of his father, a superstar cardiothoracic surgeon. Six years later, Nate’s career is being ruined by a malpractice suit. Questioning himself for the first time, he retreats to a Montana cattle ranch to visit his uncle and gain perspective. There, he meets a beautiful young woman named Avelina who teaches him more than he ever knew about matters of the heart.

Expected publication: November 11th, 2014

Tanja's pick

Annith has watched her gifted sisters at the convent come and go, carrying out their dark dealings in the name of St. Mortain, patiently awaiting her own turn to serve Death. But her worst fears are realized when she discovers she is being groomed by the abbess as a Seeress, to be forever sequestered in the rock and stone womb of the convent. Feeling sorely betrayed, Annith decides to strike out on her own.

She has spent her whole life training to be an assassin. Just because the convent has changed its mind doesn't mean she has...

Expected publication: November 4th, 2014

We'd love to see your picks so feel free to link them up.

Until the next time,